He's satisfied, a little, by that flinch and whimper. Part of him is reassured about still being addressed in favorable terms. Part of him seems to feel an overpowering need to be otherwise to her than -
"Maybe you'll tell me that the first date is too early for it," he says, his voice coming out lower, huskier, than he expected from himself, "or that nobody gets it their first day, but I hope there's a path to eventually escalate a relationship like this one to where I'm something other than cute."